Tricot w/ The Joint Chiefs of Math and Marietta – Johnny Brenda’s, October 12th, 2015

Posted on by flyingpiranha92

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This week I got the opportunity to see a band I thought I’d never get the chance to. Hailing from Japan, Tricot is an equally mathy, punky, and poppy band with no pretensions or gimmicks. I’ve been a fan since shortly after the release of their debut album “T H E” in 2013, and only became more of one after their latest album, “AND” was released this March. But to think that they’d come to America, with the obvious language barrier and the country’s clear aversion to rock, well that was nothing but a pipe dream. So I was shocked when a little over a month ago when they announced that, yes, they actually WERE coming to America (even naming the tour after the Japanese word for “Finally” or “At last”), and proceeded to snatch a ticket. I’d never heard of the venue and it was over two hours away, but I didn’t give a shit – I was going.

And went I did. I got to the venue and immediately realized that it was perfect – the room was small, there was a bar not ten feet away, and I could literally lean on the stage if I wanted to. And I did, because it was going to be a long two bands and three hours before Tricot took the stage. I say “long” because I was skeptical as hell about the openers, at least to begin with. A local emo band and a noise rock duo seemed like a mismatch for a band like Tricot, but hell, I’ve sat through far worse in service of seeing far better before. I was wrong again, though. The Joint Chiefs of Math were first on stage, and they brought a chaotic blend of noise and instrumental rock, sounding like a much harsher version of Hella and pulling off a plethora of live effects and loops in order to deliver it. As a fan of stuff like Death Grips, Oneohtrix Point Never, and various post rock bands, this was totally hitting the mark for me, and they definitely gained me as a fan by the end of their set. Following them was a local favorite in the shape of Marietta, a band clearly influenced by the likes of early Modest Mouse and American Football. And while they weren’t really up my alley stylistically, they put on a hell of a show by mixing elements of alternative, emo, and even shades of pop punk with a ton of energy and humor, and I could truly tell that they had a fair few fans crammed into this little room.

After seeing the crowd’s reaction to Marietta, I started to have my doubts about just how many people had shown up specifically for Tricot. But my doubts were misplaced, because as soon as they launched into their first song the crowd went off. Almost every head and body was nodding and jumping around, and the band was clearly feeding off of that energy. While the girls might seem diminutive in stature, they certainly make up for it in terms of power – lead guitarist Motifour Kida skipped and danced around, bassist Hiromi Hirohiro hopped like a live wire, and touring (or permanent?) drummer Miyoko Yamaguchi absolutely pounded the shit out of her kit. And while vocalist Ikkyu Nakajima was more cemented to her microphone and guitar out of obvious necessity, she still took a few opportunities to ditch the guitar and break into a dance or even jump into the crowd. This sort of thing can be hard for mathy, intricate bands like Tricot to manage, with some choosing to sacrifice musical perfection for pure energy. But Tricot made it look easy, striking the balance between tight playing and pure fun, and at times even sounding better than the record due to Hiromi’s boosted bass volume. They also had a knack for picking a setlist, too. Among obvious choices like “Pool”, “Oyasumi”, “E”, and “Ochansensu-Su”, they also played less familiar cuts like “Bakuretsu Panie-san”, “Niwa”, and their newest song “Pork Ginger”. As someone who’s been a fan for a while now, it was great to see the songs that first hooked me alongside the ones that I came to love later on, and even being introduced to a handful of songs I wasn’t familiar with already.

All in all, Tricot’s first American show ever was a hell of a ride. Even though it was just shy of the hour mark, the band played with true passion and energy, cramming in as much music and power as possible in the short time they had. No matter what nationality or gender, it’s rare to come across a band that ticks all the boxes in the way this one does, blending technicality, power, and sticky melodies with the conviction and performance to back it up. If you get the chance to see them on this tour, I absolutely suggest that you do, because there’s no guarantee they’ll be back to the States any time soon. They’re well worth the time and money.

The Joint Chiefs of Math: https://thejointchiefsofmath.bandcamp.com/

Marietta: https://whereismarietta.bandcamp.com/

Tricot’s remaining dates (courtesy of Reddit user androph):

10/16/2015〜 Bar Le Ritz PDB/Montreal, QC

10/17/2015〜 Lee’s Palace/Toronto, ON

10/18/2015 〜 Majestic Café/Detroit, MI

10/20/2015 〜 Empty Bottle/Chicago, IL $

10/21/2015 〜 The End/Nashville, TN

10/23/2015〜 Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios/Denton, TX

10/24/2015 〜 Black Barbie/Houston, TX

10/25/2015 〜 Hi-Tones/San Antonio, TX

10/27/2015 〜 Soda Bar/San Diego, CA

10/28/2015 〜 DNA Lounge/San Francisco, CA

10/28/2015 〜 Bootleg Theater/ Los Angeles, CA

Artist Feature/Mini Review: Tricot

Posted on by flyingpiranha92

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Rock is in a weird sort of place at the moment. Bands are trying to increasingly mold their sound after radio trends in order to get the airplay necessary to sustain a career, and the ones that aren’t are usually too far off the map to ever be considered by the vast majority of listeners. Few bands try to walk the middle ground between the two, accessible yet arty, and even few manage to pull it off. Enter Tricot, an all-girl rock band hailing from Kyoto, Japan. With a mix of jangly guitars, melodic songwriting, and an eye for the arty, they’re quickly making a name for themselves not only in Japan, but around the world. The reason for this international appeal is clear once you listen to them – Tricot’s sound is incredibly dynamic, shifting between tender, almost whispered vocals to crashing guitars and drums, with Ikkyu Nakajima belting out her lines at the top of her voice. And on top of it all, guitarist Motoko Kida layers intricate guitar rhythms and limber arrangements, which are in turn held down by bassist Hiromi Sagane, giving them a sound and energy that stands apart from their peers. And yet, after all this uphill success, their second album A N D comes at a bit of a troubled time for the band. After touring through Europe and Japan, Tricot lost their permanent drummer. In a move befitting of their dynamic sound, instead of getting a full-time replacement, they instead opted to enlist the help of five of Japan’s most talented drummers. The result is an album that shows the band hasn’t missed a beat, and even in the face of adversity, they’ve only grown more confident in their music.

A N D doesn’t seek to reinvent the wheel, but rather builds upon the blueprint that the band set for themselves with T H E. A N D is an album that feels more consolidated, more stripped down, and more confident – instead of dedicating an entire song to a specific mood or vibe, the band now often effortlessly mixes them together, like on “Hashire”. Starting off with a tense tremolo-picked riff and covered in reverb-laden vocals, it explodes into its chorus. “Pieeen” exhibits these dynamics as well, starting off with tender piano before kicking into the real meat of the song, blending in the band’s trademark guitars with piano work peppered throughout (and even including a piano solo). “QFF” is a long, slow build, a track that very nearly cracks the 7 minute mark, and features very little of their usual rock vibe. It’s a slow, drifting song, that isn’t overly concerned with structure or technique, and instead runs on mood and tension-building. If it wasn’t the second to last track on the album I’d consider it the centerpiece of the whole thing, but that title is a bit out of place with its actual placing. And while “Hashire” and “Pieeen” have the ability to shock with their dynamics, songs like “Niwa”, “Colorless Aquarium”, and “Noradrenaline” burst right out of the gate with all the jangly, punky urgency of any mathcore band. Ikkyu really shines on this album, vocally, especially on “Niwa”, where she shows off her punky, aggressive side, shouting and growling her lyrics with the kind of emotional power that’s not seen often in J-Rock. “CBG” shows another side of this emotional quality, too – Ikkyu sings almost in a whisper for the first half of the track, with gentle guitar arpeggios buoying the song along, and eventually achieves a catharsis resembling that of a post rock band when it finally chooses to kick things up. All these elements are what make Tricot such an interesting, exciting band. Their music is both catchy and technical, moody and aggressive, and even if you don’t speak a lick of Japanese, you can feel some real emotion come through. By taking all the best elements of mathcore and even some from grunge, they stand out as something special regardless of what country you’re from. And with this level of talent, it’s hard to see them going anywhere else but up.